eq2fandomcom-20200225-history
Bird Watching - The Do's and Don'ts of Nektulos Forest
}} Book Text If you're reading this book then you're like me - a bird enthusiast. I've been a bird watcher for years now, and would like to share some of my favorite spots with you, the reader. This tome will help to point out three types of birds I've found in the Nektulos Forest - The Double-Headed Thrush, the Horned Woodpecker, and the Ash Dodo. The Double-Headed Thrush The Double-Headed Thrush is a rather common bird, but I've found that the species found in the Nektulos Forest have a very vibrant shade of yellow in their plumage. This yellow color helps to camouflage them while they fly from tree-top to tree-top, but with a few tricks, they can easily be spotted. When looking for the Double-Headed Thrush, you must remember to keep in mind that the Thrush is a very shy bird. They are most frequently found near a very large pond that has a large skeleton in the center. And that very same skeleton is what can help you find the little guys. Before venturing to the pond, you must be sure to put on a very tight-fitting leather chest-piece. A harness, if you will. Make sure you put on some boots with very good traction as well. But, as a fellow bird-watcher, you know as well as I that this is standard field-gear. Once properly equipped, I usually like to leave for the pond right at about dawn. To be honest, any time of the day will suffice. The reason for this is that I like to see where I'm going. This is a tip I learned from a fellow bird-watcher who helped me out of the bottom of a pit-trap. Also, be sure not to take a sip of water from the river. The fish there are rather hungry. Once you've reached the pond locate the skeleton. You should be able to spot it rather easily being that it is about six Ogres high. Climb to the very top of one of the ribs and slide the rib-bone between your tunic and the leather chest-piece. At that point, hang upside down for the next hour and, sure enough, you'll see the Double-Headed Thrush. The Horned Woodpecker My first encounter with a Horned Woodpecker was several years ago when I was vacationing in the southern Commonlands. I was drinking a cold Sloshy Grog, with a spritz of lemon, mind you, when I started thinking about birds. I poured a few more Sloshy Grogs while pondering, then a few more, and a few more. That's when I found one! I looked at first and was stunned! I had never seen a Horned Woodpecker before, and there was one right in front of me, pounding its head against a tree! That's when I realized that while I was pondering birds, I had wandered into the NektulosForest! And I knew exactly where I was, too! For those who rarely make it out to the NektulosForest, you may not be familiar with BoneLake. It's a short jaunt to the north and a little to the east. And if you have as much perseverance as I, you too can find the Horned Woodpecker living in the trees around this river. Let me describe it to you, so that you can spot it better. The Horned Woodpecker is about one thumb high and has a wingspan of two Troll's armlengths. On the top of its head you'll find the most marvelous pair of curved horns jutting out of it, which they use to dig holes in trees so that they can store nuts for the winter. Were it not for that pondering while I had a few of Sloshy Grogs, I would have never thought of traveling to Nektulos to find the Horned Woodpecker. My fellow enthusiasts may scoff at me for my claims, but I know I've seen it. As a matter of fact, I saw the most interesting thing in the water as well, but I'll save that for another book. The Ash Dodo Ah! The Ash Dodo... my personal favorite of ALL the birds in the NektulosForest. Now some may say, "Look... the Ash Dodo was hunted to extinction twelve thousand years ago", but I say "Hogwash!". All you have to do is look real hard. And in this chapter, I'll show you how to find them! You'll never find the Ash Dodo by standing around in Freeport. You'll need to follow the TorrentRiver all the way up to where it starts, at the most beautiful waterfall you'll ever see in your life. Once there, you'll need to use the following bird watching technique to spot those clever little birds. First, you'll need to squint your left eye until it's almost fully closed. Now hold it like that for a few minutes. Then do this with your right eye. Repeat this a few more times. Now go find a rather comfortable rock. The next step is for you look for a good spot in the sky. Now, you see, the Ash Dodo is a rather tricky little bird. The reason people think it's extinct is that its plumage is the same exact color as that of the sky in Nektulos. That's why you'll need to get the squint down perfectly. Finally, when you're ready to see the Dodo, get off of the rock you're sitting on. Look at the rock, pull your head back, and with all of your might, smack your head into that rock three times. Now quickly, look at the sky! Squint your eyes like I showed you. See those little red swirls up there? That, my friend, is the Ash Dodo.